I first encountered “Degrees of Gray” as a high...

I first encountered “Degrees of Gray” as a high school student in a summer school program, and its desperate opening lines hit me like punch in the gut. Almost 25 years later, they still do:

You might come here Sunday on a whim.
Say your life broke down. The last good kiss
you had was years ago

Ooof.

merlin:

Degrees of Gray in Philipsburg

by Richard Hugo

[full text]

This is Richard Hugo, talking with a man in a cowboy hat named, “Paul,” about writing my favorite poem — followed by a terrific reading.

Another scene from a 1976 documentary on Hugo called, Kicking Loose the Gravel. Good stuff. For a Hugo superfan, this is like realizing there’s two Beatles records you’d never heard of.

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